The CEO's Contractual Wife (Olivia and Alexander) novel Chapter 312

Chapter 312

Olivia

50 spuchers

I stepped into the bedroom, my mind still spinning from everything that had just happened on the balcony. The conversation, the unspoken questions, this whole bizarre situation where I was apparently starting a company to prove something to myself.

Alexander followed me inside, closing the balcony doors behind us. The bedroom felt suddenly smaller with both of us in it, the air charged with something I couldn’t quite name.

“So what do you want to start?” he asked, leaning against the dresser with his arms crossed. “What kind of company?”

I kicked off my shoes, buying myself time to think. “I don’t know. Marketing, probably? It’s what I know.”

“Marketing’s got a lot of competition.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I pulled the clip from my hair, letting it fall loose around my shoulders.

“I’m being realistic.” He moved closer, his expression serious but not unkind. “LA’s saturated with boutique marketing firms. Breaking in requires capital, connections, and clients willing to take a chance on someone new.”

“So you think I can’t do it.”

“I didn’t say that.” He caught my wrist gently as I tried to brush past him. “I said it’s competitive. There’s a difference.”

I pulled away, heading to the closet to change. “I’ll try. Maybe I’ll get lucky. Maybe I’ll land a few projects and build from there.”

“Luck helps, but it’s not a strategy.”

I emerged from the closet in pajamas, raising an eyebrow at him. “What do you suggest then? Give up before I start?”

“Ask for help when you need it. That’s what smart people do.”

“I’ll do it without your help.” The words came out sharper than intended. “I can do this on my own.”

“Why are you being so defensive about accepting help?”

“Because you asked me to pay back ten times the contract amount if I wanted to leave.” My voice rose, all the hurt and anger from our earlier fight flooding back. “Ten times, Alexander. That’s how cruel you were. So forgive me if I don’t trust that your ‘help‘ won’t come with another price tag attached.”

“That’s what this is about?”

“What else would it be about?” I grabbed my pillow, hugging it to my chest like armor. ‘I married you without thinking much about the consequences. Didn’t read the fine print carefully enough. And you’re using that contract like some kind of weapon. Pay me back ten times what I received, or stay trapped in this arrangement It’s cruel You’re cruel I know exactly what kind of man you are. The kind who charges for everything. Even help”

Alexander’s jaw clenched, a muscle ticking near his temple. He moved closer to the bed, his eyes locked on mine with an intensity that made my breath catch despite my anger.

“You want to know why I put that clause in the contract?” His voice was low, dangerous. “It’s because if we break this marriage. I lose everything. Not just money. Everything. The company, my inheritance, my reputation Grandfather strips me of controlling shares, Victoria takes over Carter Enterprises, and decades of family legacy get dismantled by her

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Chapter 312

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husband’s investment firm. The ten times clause wasn’t about punishing you.” He sat on the edge of the bed. “It was about making sure you couldn’t pay it back. Making sure you’d have to stay.”

My grip on the pillow loosened. “You didn’t want me to be able to leave?”

“No.” The admission was raw and honest, in a way that made my chest tighten. “I didn’t want you to have an easy out. You couldn’t afford to walk away. And that made you safe.”

“Safe, I repeated, the word tasting strange in my mouth.

“Safe for me,” he clarified, running a hand through his hair. “I knew you’d stay because the alternative was financial ruin. I didn’t have to worry about you leaving when things got complicated. When Victoria started spreading rumors, or when the board started questioning us. You were locked in, same as me.”

“That’s manipulative.”

“Yeah, it is.” He didn’t even try to defend himself. “But it’s also honest. I needed you to stay, so I made sure you couldn’t leave. Not without destroying yourself financially.”

“And now?” My voice came out quieter than I intended.

Alexander turned to look at me fully, his eyes searching my face. “Now I’m telling you that clause is void. You don’t have to pay back ten times what you received. You don’t have to pay back anything.”

My heart stuttered. “What are you talking about?”

“You’re not leaving.” He said it with absolute certainty. “You’re angry right now, hurt because of the comments and the articles. But you’re not actually going anywhere. So the clause doesn’t matter.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do know that.” He shifted closer on the bed. “Because despite everything, despite the arrangement and the contract and all the complicated bullshit between us, you care. About this marriage. About me. You wouldn’t be this angry if you didn’t.”

“That’s presumptuous.”

“Is it?” His lips quirked into something that wasn’t quite a smile. “Then prove me wrong. Tell me you want to leave, and I’ll tear up the contract right now. No penalties, no repayment clause. Just walk away.”

I opened my mouth to say exactly that. To tell him I wanted out, wanted my freedom, wanted to escape this increasingly complicated situation.

But the words wouldn’t come.

Because he was right. Somewhere along the way, this had stopped being just a business arrangement.

“See? Alexander’s voice was softer now. “You’re not going anywhere. And neither am I

I grabbed the pillow I’d been hugging and swung it at him, the soft impact landing on his shoulder. “You’re such an ass

He caught the pillow mid–swing, tossing it aside with a smirk. “Hit me again and see what happens.

“Maybe I will” But I didn’t reach for another pillow. The anger had drained out of me, replaced by something closer to

exhaustion.

“Why are you still fixated on that ten times clause? We haven’t even talked about it for days.”

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